Do Not Disturb From Objective-See

If you are a Mac user and you haven’t heard of Objective-See, you should have. Objective-See is a company founded by former NSA guy† Patrick Wardle that provides some excellent security tools for macOS. Objective-See’s “Do Not Disturb” application is a very cool physical security tool for Mac users that alerts you if your Mac’s lid is opened.  Continue reading “Do Not Disturb From Objective-See”

Update: CopperheadOS for Android

As longtime readers here know, I’ve never been a fan of Google’s mobile device collection platform known as Android. I have, however, been a fan of a few niche variants of Android that attempt to excise Google’s collection capabilities from the OS itself. One of those OSs is the very security-focused CopperheadOS. Continue reading “Update: CopperheadOS for Android”

Tools I No Longer Recommend: Manual PGP

I’ve been a fan of “old school” manual PGP for a long time. I’ve written several articles about it here, tried to convince friends to use it, and taught it in classes as recently as 2018. I still believe it can be the absolute most secure option for email. I also believe it has the potential to be the best option for some very limited individuals and use-cases. Mostly, though, I’ve given up on it and you probably should, too. Continue reading “Tools I No Longer Recommend: Manual PGP”

Basic Alarm System Best Practices

An intrusion detection system (IDS) system should be an integral part of your home security plan. IDSs are detective security measures that also have a great deal of deterring value. Alarms are far more complicated than most people realize, however. To provide the maximum intended effectiveness, alarms must be carefully installed, tested, and used. These alarm system best practices will help you assess your own system or provide some guidance if having a new one installed. Continue reading “Basic Alarm System Best Practices”

Redundant Secure Messengers

I have previously written about the desirability of having multiple secure messaging systems.  On the text/IM front I have covered Signal, Silent Circle, Wickr, Wire, and Threema.  For voice communication I have talked about Signal and Silent Phone Wire.  Email options I have covered include ProtonMail, Tutanota, and old-fashioned PGP.  Continue reading “Redundant Secure Messengers”

The Apricorn Aegis SecureKey Flash Drive

The Apricorn Aegis family of flash drives, HDDs, and SSDs has been around for quite a while. I’ve generally rejected them based on price alone. Recently a customer requested training that included this drive. Since learning the Aegis and its capability, I’m very impressed. If you have compelling data security needs, this product might be for you. Continue reading “The Apricorn Aegis SecureKey Flash Drive”

Wire Ephemeral Messages Update

Just over a month ago I wrote a full review of Wire Secure Messenger. Two weeks later I wrote an update explaining how Wire had integrated support for two security/privacy-focused browsers: Brave and Snowhaze. Two weeks later I find myself writing a second update. This time Wire ephemeral messages have changed in a couple big ways. Continue reading “Wire Ephemeral Messages Update”

Wire iOS Update: Brave & Snowhaze Support

Recently I wrote a full review of Wire Secure Messenger. One of my complaints in the article was the lack of support for integrated browsers other than Chrome, Firefox, and Safari. I am happy to report that based (at least in part) on that article Wire now offers support for both Brave and Snowhaze. Continue reading “Wire iOS Update: Brave & Snowhaze Support”